Guinness Pro12 2014-15 | Rugby Union | Tournament

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MUNSTER 13 - 31 GLASGOW WARRIORS

Kingspan - Saturday 30th May 2015
KO: 18:30 HT: 10-21 Att: 17,057

WITH Munster Rugby seeking their fourth Guinness PRO12 title, Glasgow Warriors still feeling the pain from last year’s defeat and aiming to be the first Scottish team to take home silverware, this match was bound to be a fierce contest. They were not disappointed. Under the watchful eye of referee Nigel Owens, the Warriors stormed to a convincing 31-13 victory to claim the Guinness PRO12 Championship 2014-15.

The initial 40 minutes was fast paced with first blood going to Glasgow at 8 minutes with a try from Rob Harley. This, however, was not the first opportunity for points after DTH van de Merwe was penalised for being off his feet early on; Keatley went for the posts but it fell well short. Just a minute later DTH made a break down the line but an excellent tap tackle by Denis Hurley stopped him in his tracks.

Leone Nakarawa earned his man of the match award from the first whistle. It was his carry following a particularly strong scrum by Glasgow which set up Harley’s try. Finn Russell’s first kick of the night went over with ease, opening the scoring in favour of the away side, 7-0.

Munster replied almost instantly as try looked imminent but they knocked the ball on and Glasgow were back in possession. Not for too long though; with probably his only folly of the game, Nakarawa appeared to mistake the linesman for another player and threw a pass straight to touch rather than to Dougie Hall who did not quite have the pace to reach it.

CJ Stander charged down a Russell clearance kick and Keith Earls made a lovely break teaming up with Simon Zebo, but they were stopped just short of the line by some strong Glasgow defence.

A huge scrum for Munster on the 22 resulted in a penalty and Ian Keatley slotted the ball through the uprights, putting Munster on the score board 3-7 after 23 minutes. Those 3 points confirmed him as the PRO12 top scorer for this season, taking him to 176 points so far, outscoring Ospreys’ Dan Biggar by just 3 points.

Glasgow fought straight back, Nakarawa set up an offload to DTH who used his pace down the line and grounded the ball beneath the posts. Russell added the extras, making it 14-3 with 26 minutes gone.

The Warriors lead was further extended less than 10 minutes later; a knock on from Munster gave Glasgow a short advantage and Stuart Hogg broke away from his defender with a dummy, offloading to Henry Pyrgos who glided over for the Warriors’ third try. Again, Russell added the extra two with a simple kick.

Munster took the chance to reply; phase after phase of play with Glasgow defence holding strong, Munster inched towards the try line. Their efforts paid off and the ball went out to Andrew Smith, who went over the whitewash. Owens referred to the TMO asking for any reason why he could not award the try for a question surrounding a potential knock on in the build-up. After a lengthy TMO referral from Derek Bevan, the try was awarded; Keatley added the conversion and the deficit was cut to 11 points just before half time. The Warriors went in to the break 21-10 up.

Munster appeared to come out fighting in the second half, with Paul O’Connell going over the try line at the 45 minute mark, but was held up by Richie Vernon. The resulting scrum was strong from both sides but Munster won the penalty and Keatley put 3 more points on the board.

The Glasgow fans, however, did not have to wait too long for another score. Russell found a gap in an otherwise strong Munster defensive line and went under the posts for their fourth try of the game, slotting over the conversion, increasing the margin to 13-28, much to the delight of the fans who belted out “we are Warriors” despite being outnumbered by the Red Army in the stadium.

Al Kellock came on for his last game before retirement with 20 minutes to go to rapturous applause from the entire crowd. His first act of the match - stealing the Munster lineout on his own 22. Soon after, Niko Matawalu, who had received some rather bad press in the week for his slightly un-sportsmanlike behaviour in the last game, came on to much booing as he replaced DTH.

After their dominance in the scrum all game, Munster conceded a penalty at 73 minutes. Duncan Weir, who was brought on for Finn Russell, took advantage of this extending Glasgow’s lead to a solid 18 points, taking the final score to 13-31.

Munster were not yet defeated and went back on the attack, with Glasgow defending well on the half way line. It looked like Hogg’s replacement Sean Lamont was heading to the bin after a potentially dangerous tackle, but the TMO and Owens agreed that although he did not wrap his arms fully -injuring his own shoulder in the process- it was nothing more than a penalty. It went to the corner but Munster could not make anything of it.

With 3 minutes to go, the Glasgow fans could be heard belting out “championé”, but Munster made one last ditch attempt to save some pride as the clock turned red. But they gave away a penalty and Kellock could be heard shouting at Weir to just kick it out. The final whistle blew and the Glasgow Warriors were crowned the inaugural Guinness PRO12 Champions for 2015, the first Scottish team ever to take the title.

15 Felix Jones 14 Keith Earls 13 Andrew Smith 12 DENIS HURLEY (C) 11 Simon Zebo 10 Ian Keatley 9 Duncan Williams 1 Dave Kilcoyne 2 Eusebio Guiñazú 3 BJ Botha 4 Billy Holland 5 Paul O'Connell 6 Donnacha Ryan 7 Paddy Butler 8 CJ Stander BENCH: 16 Duncan Casey 17 James Cronin 18 Stephen Archer 19 Sean Dougall 20 Jack O'Donoghue 21 Cathal Sheridan 22 JJ Hanrahan 23 Ronan O'Mahony

SCORERS T: Smith C: Keatley P: Keatley (2)

15 Stuart Hogg 14 Tommy Seymour 13 Richie Vernon 12 Peter Horne 11 DTH van der Merwe 10 Finn Russell 9 Henry Pyrgos 1 Gordon Reid 2 Dougie Hall 3 Rossouw de Klerk 4 Leone Nakarawa 5 Jonny Gray 6 Rob Harley 7 Ryan Wilson 8 JOSH STRAUSS (C) BENCH: 16 Fraser Brown 17 Jerry Yanuyanutawa 18 Jon Welsh 19 Al Kellock 20 Chris Fusaro 21 Niko Matawalu 22 Duncan Weir 23 Sean Lamont

SCORERS T: Hartley, Van De Merwe, Pyrgos, Russell C: Russell (4) P: Weir

Referee: Nigel Owens (WRU) Asst. Referees: Ian Davies (WRU), Sean Brickell (WRU), Gwyn Morris (WRU), Wayne Davies (WRU) TMO: Derek Bevan (WRU) Citing Commissioner: Stefano Marrama (FIR)

SF1
GLASGOW WARRIORS 16 - 14 ULSTER

Scotstoun - Friday 22 May
KO: 19:45 HT: 6-8 Att: 10,000

FINN RUSSELL's nerveless conversion four minutes from time booked Glasgow Warriors' place in the GUINNESS PRO12 final as they edged past a valiant Ulster 16-14 in a thrilling encounter at Scotstoun.

The Warriors ended the regular season top of the table but were in danger of becoming the first team in PRO12 history to lose a home semi-final until DTH van der Merwe's late try and Russell's conversion sealed their place in next Saturday's showpiece at the Kingspan Stadium.

Glasgow beat Ulster 32-10 in the prelude to this match last weekend, but a repeat result was in jeopardy when Chris Henry went over for the only try of the first period to give the visitors an 8-6 half-time lead. The sides then traded penalties after the break before van der Merwe crashed over on the wing and Russell was perfect from the tee to send the hosts into a second consecutive final.

Ulster, seeking a place in the final at their home stadium, boasted 304 Test caps in their starting XV and that experience showed from the off as Glasgow were pinged in front of the posts with less than a minute played - Ruan Pienaar giving the visitors a 3-0 advantage.

Russell did level proceedings with a three-pointer soon after, before Stuart Hogg gave the Warriors the lead with another penalty from just inside his own half, but it was the Irish side largely on top.

With Pienaar controlling the play from scrum-half, their territorial advantage was eventually rewarded with 18 minutes gone. After 13 phases of play, the South African No.9 worked the ball wide to Louis Ludik who drew Nikola Matawalu in off his wing before slipping the ball to Henry - the flanker cantering in for his second PRO12 try of the season. Pienaar could not add the touchline conversion but his side, making their third semi-final appearance in as many seasons, continued to press, probing away at a well-marshalled Warriors defence. And their dominance was almost converted into more points on the stroke of half-time as they set up camp in the home 22, only to be held up narrowly short of the line, 8-6 ahead.

Twelve months ago, Gregor Townsend's troops beat another Irish side, Munster, by a single point at the semi-final stage in a similarly brutal and hard-hitting encounter. That experience seemed to stand them in good stead after the break as they sought to overturn the two-point deficit - an early Matawalu break from inside his own 22 symptomatic of their increasing intent.

Yet it was Ulster who notched the first points of the second period as Pienaar slotted his second penalty of the game from the right-hand side. With the prospect of becoming the first team in league history to lose a home semi-final hanging over them, the hosts responded. Matawalu was narrowly beaten to the ball following a deft grubber kick through but Russell soon made the score 9-11 with a penalty from in front of the sticks.

The accuracy and precision of the first half began to fade as the tension mounted and Pienaar took advantage in the 66th minute with a long-range three-pointer.

As the clock began to tick down, Glasgow continuously pounded away at a resilient Ulster defence and with five minutes left they finally got the breakthrough they craved. After working the ball from one side to the other, Russell's long, looping pass found van der Merwe who barrelled his way over the line to send a sold-out Scotstoun into raptures.

Despite being almost tight to the right-hand touchline, Russell held his nerve to nail the pivotal conversion and give the home side a 16-14 lead.

Hogg missed a long-range penalty as the clock seeped into the red but Ulster could not go the length of the pitch meaning it was ultimately Glasgow's night.

15 Stuart Hogg 14 Tommy Seymour 13 Richie Vernon 12 Peter Horne 11 Niko Matawalu 10 Finn Russell 9 Henry Pyrgos 1 Ryan Grant 2 Fraser Brown 3 Rossouw de Klerk 4 Jonny Gray 5 AL KELLOCK (C) 6 Josh Strauss 7 Chris Fusaro 8 Adam Ashe BENCH: 16 Pat MacArthur 17 Gordon Reid 18 Mike Cusack 19 Leone Nakarawa 20 Ryan Wilson 21 Duncan Weir 22 Sean Lamont 23 DTH van der Merwe

SCORERS T: van der Merwe C: Russell P: Russell (2), Hogg

15 Louis Ludik 14 Tommy Bowe 13 Jared Payne 12 Darren Cave 11 Craig Gilroy 10 Paddy Jackson 9 Ruan Pienaar 1 Callum Black 2 RORY BEST (C) 3 Ricky Lutton 4 Lewis Stevenson 5 Dan Tuohy 6 Iain Henderson 7 Chris Henry 8 Roger Wilson BENCH:16 Rob Herring 17 Andrew Warwick 18 Bronson Ross 19 Robbie Diack 20 Sean Reidy 21 Paul Marshall 22 Stuart McCloskey 23 Mike Allen

SCORERS T: Henry P: Pienaar (3)

Man of the Match: Finn Russell

Referee: George Clancy (IRFU) Asst Referees: John Lacey (IRFU) Dudley Phillips (IRFU) TMO: Seamus Flannery (IRFU)Citing Commissioner: Gwyn Bowden (WRU)

SF2
MUNSTER RUGBY 21 - 18 OSPREYS

Thomond Park - Saturday 23 May 2015
KO: 14:30 HT: 11-3 Att: 16,158

JOSH MATAVESI saw his last-minute score ruled out in an astonishing climax to the game at Thomond Park, as Munster clung on to beat Ospreys 21-18 in a nail-biting GUINNESS PRO12 semi-final.

Simon Zebo's late first-half score gave the hosts an 11-3 advantage at the interval, after Dan Biggar and Ian Keatley had exchanged penalties. But the game opened up after the break with Denis Hurley and Paddy Butler for Munster, and Rhys Webb and Jeff Hassler all touching down inside a frenetic ten minutes.

With Keatley misfiring - 15 points going begging from the tee in total for Munster - Ospreys stayed in touch, but elation turned to dismay as Matavesi crossed with the clock in the red, only for the TMO to reveal a clear Webb knock-on in the build up.

Ospreys shot out of the blocks and began with aplomb, Biggar showing their intentions from the off with a missed drop-goal attempt inside a minute. Ospreys battered the Munster try-line, but when Eli Walker broke for the corner he was pinged for holding on, and Munster were able to clear.

And the away side were soon defending hard themselves, Stephen Archer brutally charging through three tackles before losing control of the ball as he crossed the try-line. But it was Ospreys who opened the scoring when Biggar landed a straightforward penalty on 13 minutes, the hosts pinged for not rolling away from an Ospreys attacking line-out.

Keatley levelled the scores three minutes later, and then put Munster in front on 22 minutes with another simple penalty after his crosskick was collected by Ospreys' defenders. The fly-half missed an opportunity from range to put the Munstermen further ahead when Webb was penalised for obstructing Duncan Williams, on for the injured Conor Murray, as he attempted to collect his own kick.

But as it looked as though the game would go into half-time tryless, Zebo charged through on 39 minutes thanks to a wonderful attacking move from the Munster back-line. From a scrum on halfway CJ Stander was able to offload to Butler, who surged through before finding the winger who finished emphatically in the corner, going into the break 11-3 up, as Keatley's conversion was wide of the mark.

Munster began the second half as they ended the first, building the phases before Hurley got the better of Walker in the corner to touch down.

Munster looked ominous with the ball in hand, but Webb's sensational 46th minute score gave Ospreys a way back into the game, as he gambled at the back of the scrum and intercepted Stander's loose pass. Biggar's conversion attempt was wide, and the hosts responded to the setback in style with a try of their own, with furious work at the breakdown earning them valuable yards before Williams sent Butler over two minutes later.

Ospreys were not to be outdone, and a rollercoaster five minutes was complete when the returning Hassler collected a loose ball before stepping inside and sprinting through the heart of the field before crossing the whitewash under the posts.

Josh Matavesi's came agonisingly close to scoring after a 63rd minute break from the midfield, and Biggar made it a three-point game from range with Munster off their feet. But with eight minutes remaining, Munster elected to kick for goal when Ospreys holding on at the breakdown, and Keatley again missed - his miserable afternoon from the tee ending with just two successful kicks from five.

JJ Hanrahan was thrown into the fray by Anthony Foley, and missed from the tee himself moments later, but the real drama was still to come as Matavesi broke through with the final play of the game to seemingly clinch the game for Ospreys. But referee Nigel Owens went upstairs, and Webb was adjudged to have knocked-on at the breakdown to break Ospreys' hearts and send Thomond Park into raptures.

15 Felix Jones 14 Keith Earls 13 Andrew Smith 12 Denis Hurley 11 Simon Zebo 10 Ian Keatley 9 Conor Murray 1 Dave Kilcoyne 2 Eusebio Guiñazú 3 Stephen Archer 4 Donnacha Ryan 5 Paul O'Connell 6 PETER O'MAHONY (C) 7 Paddy Butler 8 CJ Stander BENCH: 17 John Ryan 18 BJ Botha 19 Billy Holland 20 Jack O'Donoghue 21 Duncan Williams 22 JJ Hanrahan 23 Ronan O'Mahony

SCORERS T: Zebo, Hurley, Butler P: Keatley (2)

15 Dan Evans 14 Jeff Hassler 13 Ben John 12 Josh Matavesi 11 Eli Walker 10 Dan Biggar 9 Rhys Webb 1 Nicky Smith 2 Scott Baldwin 3 Dmitri Arhip 4 Tyler Ardron 5 ALUN WYN JONES (C) 6 Dan Lydiate 7 Justin Tipuric 8 Dan Baker BENCH: 16 Sam Parry 17 Marc Thomas 18 Aaron Jarvis 19 Rory Thornton 20 James King 21 Tom Habberfield 22 Sam Davies 23 Jonathan Spratt

SCORERS T: Webb, Hassler C: Biggar P: Biggar (2)

Man of the Match: CJ Stander

Referee: Nigel Owens (WRU) Asst Referees: Leighton Hodges(WRU), Ian Davies (WRU) TMO: Gareth Simmonds (WRU) Citing Commissioner: Richard McGhee (SRU)

ZEBRE RUGBY's hopes of playing in the European Rugby Champions Cup next season were ended with a 29-5 defeat at BT Sport Cardiff Arms Park. Victory for the Parma-based outfit and defeat for Italian compatriots Benetton Treviso against Scarlets was required on the final day of GUINNESS PRO12 action for Zebre to reach their goal. But, despite frustrating their hosts Cardiff Blues for the opening half an hour, Andrea Cavinato's side succumbed.

OSPREYS will have to make history if they are to lift the GUINNESS PRO12 title after they blew the chance of a home semi-final despite securing a narrow 24-20 victory over Connacht. Sitting top of the GUINNESS PRO12 table prior to kick-off the Ospreys knew a bonus-point win would guarantee a home semi-final but after a flawless first-half the Welsh region couldn't add a fourth try. Tries from Dan Biggar, Ben John and Rhys Webb had the Ospreys 24-0 up at the break but Connacht came flying back to score 20 unanswered second-half points and secure seventh spot to set up a European Champions Cup play-off. Ospreys now face a difficult trip to Munster, who secured second spot with a bonus point win over Newport Gwent Dragons, knowing that nobody has ever won an away semi-final in the GUINNESS PRO12 play-offs.

LATE tries from Jordi Murphy and Luke McGrath saw Leinster end a mixed GUINNESS PRO12 campaign in style and put an end to Edinburgh's European hopes with a thrilling 36-23 bonus-point triumph at BT Murrayfield. The hosts realistically needed a victory to secure seventh and a European play-off spot but the margin of defeat, coupled with victory for Scarlets over Benetton Treviso and Connacht's four-point loss to Ospreys saw them finish in eighth.

A stunning second-half performance saw Glasgow Warriors secure top spot in the GUINNESS PRO12 and home advantage for next week's playoffs after after they sealed a 32-10 victory over Ulster. Two tries for Finn Russell and a brilliant solo effort from Stuart Hogg put the Warriors on the cusp before Richie Vernon put the icing on the cake with seven minutes to go. Ulster had taken a 10-6 lead going into the break but Glasgow rallied in the second period and ran over four tries to set up another clash with Neil Doak's men.

CONOR MURRAY grabbed a hat-trick as Munster trounced Newport Gwent Dragons 50-27 to secure that all-important home semi-final in the GUINNESS PRO12 play-offs. It was an explosive start to the game as Munster went in all guns blazing in their relentless search for the bonus point. Andrew Smith set them on their way before Ashton Hewitt responded but a CJ Stander special and a double from Conor Murray meant the Irish side had four tries with just 23 minutes gone. Paul O'Connell, Keith Earls and Ronan O'Mahony grabbed second-half tries with Murray wrapping up his hat-trick and Tyler Morgan, Jack Dixon and Rhys Buckley all getting consolatory scores for Newport who finish the season in ninth.

STEFF EVANS' try ten minutes from time saw Scarlets squeeze past Treviso and book their spot in next season's European Rugby Champions Cup. Scarlets arrived in Italy knowing a win would see them secure their place in next season's premier European competition, however their hosts had the same idea as they looked to finish above Zebre in the GUINNESS PRO12 table. And it was Treviso who got off to a fast start as tries from Davide Giazzon and Jayden Hayward gave them a 13-3 half-time lead. But that was as good as it got for the home side as after Liam Williams touched down, Evans went over on 70 minutes to ensure Scarlets finished their GUINNESS PRO12 campaign in sixth. However, there was still something for Treviso to celebrate as they will join them in Europe's top competition next season after finishing above Zebre.

RESULTS

CARDIFF BLUES 29 - 5 ZEBRE

BT Sport Cardiff Arms Park - Saturday 16 May 2015
KO: 15:00 HT: 12-0 Att: 6,487

BLUES 15 Aled Summerhill 14 Alex Cuthbert 13 Tom Isaacs 12 Gavin Evans 11 Richard Smith 10 Rhys Patchell 9 Tavis Knoyle 1 Gethin Jenkins 2 Kristian Dacey 3 Adam Jones 4 Filo Paulo 5 Lou Reed 6 Macauley Cook 7 Sam Warburton 8 Josh Navidi BENCH: 16 Rhys Williams 17 Thomas Davies 18 Taufa'ao Filise 19 Josh Turnbull 20 Manoa Vosawai 21 Lloyd Williams 22 Garyn Smith 23 Gareth Anscombe

SCORERS T: Cuthbert (2), Jenkins, Patchell, Garyn Smith C: Patchell (2)

ZEBRE 15 Dion Berryman 14 Giulio Toniolatti 13 Mirco Bergamasco 12 Gonzalo Garcia 11 David Odiete 10 Luciano Orquera 9 Brendon Leonard 1 Andrea de Marchi 2 Oliviero Fabiani 3 Dario Chistolini 4 Quintin Geldenhuys 5 Marco Bortolami 6 Mauro Bergamasco 7 Dries van Schalkwyk 8 Samuela Vunisa BENCH: 16 Tommaso d'Apice 17 Andrea Lovotti 18 Luca Redolfini 19 Valerio Bernabo 20 Filippo Ferrarini 21 Guglielmo Palazzani 22 Tommaso Iannone 23 Filippo Cristiano

SCORERS T: Bernabo Bortolami

Referee: Gary Conway

CONNACHT RUGBY 20 - 24 OSPREYS

Sportsground - Saturday 16 May 2015
KO: 15:00 HT: 0-24 Att: 5,226

CONNACHT 15 Tiernan O'Halloran 14 Fionn Carr 13 Robbie Henshaw 12 Bundee Aki 11 Matt Healy 10 Jack Carty 9 Kieran Marmion 1 Dennis Buckley 2 Tom McCartney 3 Rodney Ah You 4 Andrew Browne 5 Aly Muldowney 6 John Muldoon 7 Eoghan Masterson 8 Eoin McKeon BENCH: 16 Dave Heffernan 17 JP Cooney 18 Finlay Bealham 19 Michael Swift 20 George Naoupu 21 John Cooney 22 Miah Nikora 23 Shane O'Leary

SCORERS T: Masterson, Buckley C: Carty (2) P: Carty (2)

OSPREYS 15 Dan Evans 14 Hanno Dirksen 13 Ben John 12 Josh Matavesi 11 Eli Walker 10 Dan Biggar 9 Rhys Webb 1 Nicky Smith 2 Scott Baldwin 3 Dimitri Arhip 4 Tyler Ardron 5 Alun Wyn Jones 6 James King 7 Justin Tipuric 8 Dan Baker BENCH: 16 Sam Parry 17 Marc Thomas 18 Aaron Jarvis 19 Rory Thornton 20 Dan Lydiate 21 Tom Habberfield 22 Sam Davies 23 Jonathan Spratt

SCORERS T: Biggar, John, Webb C: Biggar (2) P: Biggar

Referee: Marius Mitrea

EDINBURGH RUGBY 23 - 36 LEINSTER RUGBY

BT Murrayfield - Saturday 16 May 2015
KO: 15:00 HT: 10-17 Att: 4,643

EDINBURGH 15 Jack Cuthbert 14 Dougie Fife 13 Sam Beard 12 Andries Strauss 11 Tim Visser 10 Tom Heathcote 9 Sam Hidalgo-Clyne 1 Alasdair Dickinson 2 Ross Ford 3 John Andress 4 Anton Bresler 5 Ben Toolis 6 Fraser McKenzie 7 Hamish Watson 8 Cornell Du Preez BENCH: 16 Neil Cochrane 17 Rory Sutherland 18 Simon Berghan 19 Ollie Atkins 20 James Hilterbrand 21 Nathan Fowles 22 Jade Te Rure 23 Tom Brown

SCORERS T: Watson, Visser C: Hidalgo-Clyne (2) P: Hidalgo-Clyne (3)

LEINSTER 15 Rob Kearney 14 Zane Kirchner 13 Colm O'Shea 12 Noel Reid 11 Dave Kearney 10 Ian Madigan 9 Isaac Boss 1 Jack McGrath 2 Richardt Strauss 3 Mike Ross 4 Devin Toner 5 Mike McCarthy 6 Jordi Murphy 7 Sean O'Brien 8 Jamie Heaslip BENCH: 16 Aaron Dundon 17 Michael Bent 18 Tadhg Furlong 19 Tom Denton 20 Jack Conan 21 Luke McGrath 22 Jimmy Gopperth 23 Cian Kelleher

SCORERS T: Reid, Conan, Kirchner, Murphy, Luke McGrath C: Madigan (4) DG: Madigan

Referee: Nigel Owens

GLASGOW WARRIORS 32 - 10 ULSTER

Scotstoun Stadium - Saturday 16 May 2015
KO: 15:00 HT: 6-10 Att: 10,000

GLASGOW 15 Stuart Hogg 14 Tommy Seymour 13 Richie Vernon 12 Peter Horne 11 Sean Lamont 10 Finn Russell 9 Nikola Matawalu 1 Ryan Grant 2 Dougie Hall 3 Rossouw De Klerk 4 Jonny Gray 5 Alastair Kellock 6 Josh Strauss 7 Chris Fusaro 8 Adam Ashe BENCH: 16 Pat MacArthur 17 Gordon Reid 18 Mike Cusack 19 Leone Nakarawa 20 Ryan Wilson 21 Henry Pyrgos 22 Duncan Weir 23 Peter Murchie

SCORERS T: Hogg, Russell (2), Vernon C: Russell (3) P: Russell (2) Gray

ULSTER 15 Louis Ludik 14 Rory Scholes 13 Sam Arnold 12 Stuart McCloskey 11 Mike Allen 10 Ian Humphreys 9 Paul Marshall 1 Andrew Warwick 2 Rob Herring 3 Ricky Lutton 4 Lewis Stevenson 5 Franco van der Merwe 6 Clive Ross 7 Chris Henry 8 Robbie Diack BENCH: 16 Rory Best 17 Kyle McCall 18 Bronson Ross 19 Iain Henderson 20 Roger Wilson 21 Ruan Pienaar 22 Paddy Jackson 23 Tommy Bowe

SCORERS T: Henry C: Humphreys P: Humphreys Warwick

Referee: Ian Davies

MUNSTER RUGBY 50 - 27 DRAGONS

Irish Independent Park - Saturday 16 May 2015
KO: 15:00 HT: 33-10 Att: 8,200

MUNSTER 15 Felix Jones 14 Keith Earls 13 Andrew Smith 12 Denis Hurley 11 Ronan O'Mahony 10 Ian Keatley 9 Conor Murray 1 John Ryan 2 Eusebio Guiñazú 3 BJ Botha 4 Billy Holland 5 Paul O'Connell 6 Donnacha Ryan 7 Paddy Butler 8 CJ Stander BENCH: 16 Niall Scannell 17 Dave Kilcoyne 18 Stephen Archer 19 Sean Dougall 20 Jack O'Donoghue 21 Duncan Williams 22 JJ Hanrahan 23 Andrew Conway

SCORERS T: Smith, Stander, Murray (3), O'Connell, Earls, O'Mahony C: Keatley (5) Butler

DRAGONS 15 Jason Tovey 14 Tom Prydie 13 Tyler Morgan 12 Jack Dixon 11 Ashton Hewitt 10 Dorian Jones 9 Jonathan Evans 1 Boris Stankovich 2 Hugh Gustafson 3 Brok Harris 4 Cory Hill 5 Rynard Landman 6 Nick Crosswell 7 Nic Cudd 8 Taulupe Faletau BENCH: 16 Rhys Buckley 17 Phil Price 18 Lloyd Fairbrother 19 Matthew Screech 20 James Benjamin 21 Richie Rees 22 Barney Nightingale 23 Rhys Jones

SCORERS T: Hewitt, Morgan, Buckley, Dixon C: Tovey (2) P: Tovey Gustafson

Referee: Ben Whitehouse

BENETTON TREVISO 13 - 17 SCARLETS

Stadio Monigo - Saturday 16 May 2015
KO: 16:00 HT: 13-3 Att: 3,895

TREVISO 15 Jayden Hayward 14 Andrea Pratichetti 13 Luca Morisi 12 Enrico Bacchin 11 Simone Ragusi 10 Sam Christie 9 Henry Seniloli 1 Matteo Zanusso 2 Davide Giazzon 3 Rupert Harden 4 Antonio Pavanello 5 Cornelius van Zyl 6 Paul Derbyshire 7 Francesco Minto 8 Matthew Luamanu BENCH: 16 Albert Anae 17 Romulo Acosta 18 Salesi Manu 19 Marco Fuser 20 Meyer Swanepoel 21 Nicola Cattina 22 Angelo Esposito 23 James Ambrosini

SCORERS T: Giazon, Hayward P: Hayward

SCARLETS 15 Liam Williams 14 Adam Warren 13 Hadleigh Parkes 12 Scott Williams 11 Steffan Evans 10 Rhys Priestland 9 Gareth Davies 1 Rob Evans 2 Ken Owens 3 Peter Edwards 4 Jake Ball 5 Lewis Rawlins 6 Aaron Shingler 7 James Davies 8 John Barclay BENCH: 16 Ryan Elias 17 Phil John 18 Wyn Jones 19 George Earle 20 Rory Pitman 21 Rhodri Williams 22 Steve Shingler
23 Dan Jones

SCORERS T: Liam Williams, Steffan Evans C: Priestland (2) P: Priestland

Referee: George Clancy

HUGH GUSTAFSON's first GUINNESS PRO12 try of the season helped Newport Gwent Dragons enact some revenge on Edinburgh, damaging the Scottish side's chances of European rugby next term in the process. Having lost out in their European semi-final clash, Dragons welcomed Edinburgh to Rodney Parade looking to get their own back. And they did exactly that as Jason Tovey and Tom Prydie kicked the home side into a 9-0 half-time lead before Gustafson went over for the game's first score on the hour. Stuart McInally replied but it was too little too late, the result meaning the Dragons can finish no lower than ninth this GUINNESS PRO12 season, all the while hampering Edinburgh's chances of finishing in the top six.

CAPTAIN fantastic Jamie Heaslip scored the only try of the game as Leinster sealed a narrow 10-0 victory over Benetton Treviso in the GUINNESS PRO12 to guarantee a spot in next season's Champions Cup. The Irish side may be out of this year's title race but Friday's victory over the Italians means Leinster have secured European qualification for next term. Leinster's last defeat at the hands of Italian opposition was in September 2010 and to be truthful they never looked like losing that record on Friday night. Despite the slender nature of their victory, the Irish province dominated the game and it only took Heaslip's early try to wrap up the points at the RDS Arena.

RHYS WEBB scored a superb second-half try as Ospreys triumphed 21-10 over Glasgow Warriors to move into pole position in the hunt for a home semi-final in the GUINNESS PRO12 play-offs. No team has ever won an away semi-final in the history of the PRO12 play-offs and OSPREYS made sure they go into the final round of the campaign in top spot after extending their unbeaten home record in the league this season. It was a clinical 20 minutes after half-time which secured the all-important win for the Welsh side with tries from Ben John and Webb putting the game out of reach. A late try from Chris Fusaro couldn't prevent Ospreys from picking up their fifth win on the trot and replacing Glasgow at the top of the GUINNESS PRO12 table on Friday night.

PADDY JACKSON's heroic last-minute conversion earned Ulster a 23-23 draw against rivals Munster in a ferocious encounter at the Kingspan Stadium, keeping his side's unbeaten home record intact in the process. Ulster trailed for almost the whole of the first period, with Ian Keatley on form from the tee to kick three penalties, but Tommy Bowe broke through to score with the last play of the half to put Ulster in front. And after Keatley and Jackson had exchanged second-half kicks, Iain Henderson's red card looked to have cost his side as Keith Earls went over in the corner with just four minutes remaining. But replacement Paul Marshall charged over with the final play of the game to send a packed Kingspan Stadium into raptures, and Jackson's conversion from the sideline leaves the race for home GUINNESS PRO12 semi-finals wide open heading into the final weekend.

JOHN COONEY ran in two first-half tries to set Connacht on their way to a comprehensive 40-10 victory over Zebre in the GUINNESS PRO12. The scrum-half opened the scoring after 11 minutes and had his second shortly before the break as Connacht moved slowly out of sight. There was some slight resistance from the Italians in the second period but it proved to be futile as Eoghan Masterson's 54th minute score made it mission impossible for Zebre.

KEN OWENS scored the only try of the match as Scarlets boosted their chances of a top-half GUINNESS PRO12 finish by running out 16-6 winners against Cardiff Blues. It looked like the match would be a battle of the boots as Rhys Priestland and Rhys Patchell exchanged four penalties between them in the opening period. But the home side grew into the match and, while it was a far-from dominant performance, Owens' try was enough to secure a deserved victory.